Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) has expressed shock and concern over the recent directive by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to outrightly ban the production and sale of alcoholic beverages packaged in sachets and small PET bottles by December 31, 2025.

Director-General of MAN, Segun Ajayi-Kadir, stressed that the unexpected development is dissonant to all stakeholders’ efforts on the matter and completely at variance with the subsisting position of the House of Representatives on the same matter.

He said that the earlier directive for a one-year extension by the Ministry of Health, which culminated in the consideration and validation of the draft National Alcohol Policy by stakeholders, should have been considered before any major official pronouncement by another arm of the government.

Ajayi-Kadir, who regretted that a stakeholders’ consultation, either through a public hearing or focused meetings with relevant stakeholders in the alcohol beverages industry, should have been called by the relevant Senate Committee before a ban was ordered, emphasised that the issues concerning the ban had already been resolved by an enlarged committee, comprising all the stakeholders and NAFDAC representatives.

He further stressed that the unfounded and untested statement of abuse by minors had been dismissed by research independently conducted by the government, saying: “We went further, notwithstanding the report of the surveys, to initiate a series of campaigns in respect of responsible alcohol consumption to discourage underage abuse. These campaigns have necessitated an industry to spend over N1 billion in advertisements at all levels of media outreach across the federation and have been very impactful in discouraging abuse by underage persons.”

Ajayi-Kadir described the ban as terribly unfair and against the run of play in the industry,.

“It is our position that NAFDAC should have presented its opinion to the committee and the ministry during the validation, rather than by-passing these processes and opting to approach the National Assembly without giving other stakeholders the opportunity to be consulted or to respond,” he said.

He warned that the ban is counterproductive and forebodes economic dislocation of significant proportions for the nation at this period, saying that it will lead to serious consequences, including loss of over N1.9 trillion investment, mass retrenchment of over 500,000 direct employees and approximately five million indirect, reduction in capacity utilisation in manufacturing and loss of indigenous businesses.

He further warned that aside from the heavy losses they would incur, a ban would open a floodgate of illicit and unwholesome substances that are not subject to regulation and beyond the control of the relevant agencies.

He, therefore, appealed to the Senate to rescind the ban and restrain NAFDAC from implementing it from December 31, 2025.”